In Mount and Blade 2 Bannerlord, you can buy a workshop and earn a decent income through it. Most players get confused about the mechanics surrounding Workshops in the game, and this is where we come in.
In this comprehensive guide for Bannerlord, we’ll go over the basics of Workshops, including how you can buy them, turn them into reliable income streams, and the best ways to set them up. We’ll also cover all workshops and their inputs, some useful mods, and more.
What are Workshops in Mount and Blade 2?
Workshops are player-owned buildings that use raw materials to produce goods to be traded for a profit. Workshops can be built and operated in any city in the game but have specific inputs and requirements.
Each workshop will require anywhere from 12000 to 15000 denars to set up and must be fed certain raw materials so they can produce the good you’ve opted for. If you want to change the type of goods your Workshop produces, you can talk to the worker and pay him 2000 denars to do so.
How to buy a Workshop in Bannerlord?
To buy a workshop in Mount and Blade 2, visit any large town that isn’t hostile towards you. From here, walk around the town and hold left Alt while looking for your desired workshops. Finding one is not hard since three or more workshops are easily found in large towns.
Once you’ve found a Workshop, just head inside and talk to the worker there. Interacting with the worker allows you to choose to purchase the Workshop. Once you’ve bought it, you’re given full creative control over the shop’s operations.
How to make money with Workshops in Bannerlord 2?
Workshops, when purchased, can be changed into one of several shops, including blacksmiths, breweries, wine presses, and more. The choice of what shop to set up boils down to the type of raw materials the town and its surrounding villages produce.
Ortysia, for example, produces grain and silver. With the former, you can set up a brewery, and with the latter, a silversmith. Setting up a Pottery Shop in Ortysia wouldn’t make sense as it does not produce the raw material (clay) to function. Always consider the inputs before setting up a workshop.
Below, you’ll find a complete list of Workshops and their raw materials in Mount and Blade 2: Bannerlord.
| Workshop | Input/material types |
|---|---|
| Silversmith | Silver ore |
| Pottery shop | Clay |
| Olive press | Olive |
| Linen weaver | Flax |
| Brewery | Grain |
| Wool weaver | Wool |
| Wood workshop | Hardwood |
| Wine press | Grapes |
| Velvet weaver | Cotton |
| Tannery | Hides/linen |
| Smithy | Iron ore/hardwood/linen |
Apart from inputs, it’s also important to consider the town’s economic situation you’re investing in. A town with higher prosperity usually prices its products higher, allowing you to earn more revenue. Additionally, ensure the product you’re investing in sells well in the region.
Because of these reasons, no single shop produces the most profit in the game. Your profit margin will always depend on your location and the economic factors of the city your shop is based in.
Workshops acquire materials automatically from the villages around them and the town itself and produce their respective goods automatically. These goods can be traded for a profit or stored in your warehouse.
Warehouses were added to the game in a recent update and let you decide the amount of goods you can sell or keep. Alternatively, warehouses can also be used to store raw materials that you’ve acquired.
Workshop halted/not working in Mount and Blade 2?
If you find that your workshop is making little to no money, certain things may prevent this. Firstly, the selling price of the output may be too low (in some cases, it may be near or equal to the cost of inputs), allowing you to break even instead of turning in a profit. To remedy this, switch to another Workshop that produces a good that sells for a better price in the region.
If your workshops have halted production, check if your raw input production works. Sometimes, your villages and/or towns may stop producing the raw material required for your workshop. Like the previous problem, the best thing to do here is to switch gears and invest in another workshop.
It is also important to note that most, if not all, shops take some time to turn in a profit. It is better to wait 100-200 days before you start worrying about not making any money.
Best Mods for Workshops in Bannerlord?
Workshops can be quite difficult to manage and set up in Mount and Blade 2, which can diminish the fun of having your own virtual business. Several mods make the overall experience smoother and more enjoyable.
The Workshops Advanced mod, for example, lets you level up your shops, which grants you increased profits. This mod also lets you add more workers to your shops for additional output at the cost of decreasing efficiency, and if you do not want to lose their workshop due to a war, this mod has you covered there too.
On the other hand, the Profitable Workshops mod lets you start earning from your Workshops immediately instead of waiting 100 or 200 days for them to become profitable.
